Create Engagement with a Learning Center

Remember when you were in kindergarten? After those tasty PB&J sandwiches and chocolate milk for lunch, it was learning center time. Yes! Kids spent the afternoon rotating between a few numbered tables, each one designed for fun, hands-on exploration of subjects like math, writing or science. I remember that the science table had shells, leaves, rocks, dead bugs, charts and a magnifying glass. My personal favorite, naturally, was the writing table – an exciting place filled with crayons, pens, paper and books.

OK…but I’m not in kindergarten anymore

Fast forward to 2014. You’re all grown up now, a savvy marketer looking for ways to engage your audience with great content. And you’re feeling like your current efforts need some shaking up. Things are feeling a little “meh.” It’s a great time to consider building an online learning center, which is a place to organize and showcase your content in all its forms. A learning center is a great solution if you’re looking to:

Offer current information and tools in text, audio and video form

Help customers, employees or prospects find resources and engage in conversations

Highlight opportunities, such as teleconferences, events or jobs

Link to social media outlets.

Got it! Why is a learning center so effective?

Call it a learning center, knowledge center or content hub – these awesome storehouses of information are so effective as a marketing tool because they’re based on basic educational theory. Humans have different learning styles and ways they like to interact with information. Donald and I like to read. Adam likes to watch videos. Ricky likes to listen. A learning center offers a learner-centered approach that gives visitors a say in how they access content. Result? Empowerment and the potential for better outcomes.

Rand Fishkin, marketing guru at Moz, says that content marketing isn’t about the first visit – or the second or the third. It’s about “earning familiarity, trust and relationship.” A learning center, with its varied content and exciting layout, gives prospects a solid multi-touch opportunity to learn and interact with your brand. Give them the value they’re looking for and they’ll come back over and over, talk about your learning center – and be more likely to move through the sales funnel.

I’m in. How do you create a learning center?

Start with content. You’ve probably got the building blocks of a learning center at hand: articles, videos, tweet streams, presentations, posts or photos. So if you don’t have time to create – curate! This example illustrates the way that Health Catalyst makes its content come alive in a learning center.

Don’t just curate – create! Keep your learning center fresh and sticky by continually updating the content with pieces that inspire and excite.

We have a blog today. How does that work with a learning center?

Excellent question. A blog is focused on discussion and news. It can easily coexist with a learning center. Keep in mind that a good blog stays engaging and fresh with regular updates – so if your business doesn’t have a steady stream of news, a learning center can eliminate the need for a blog. The learning center may be exactly what you’ve needed all along!

Thanks for reading. I hope you enjoyed this look at how a learning center can help you educate and communicate with your audience. Please ask questions and share your stories in the handy-dandy comments section.

By: Kelly Borberg

Copywriter

Kelly has more than 15 years of experience in original copywriting, editing, digital content marketing, message development and communications strategy. Kelly is known for excellent writing that has polish, creativity and positive attitude – and is particularly experienced in writing for life sciences clients such as IQVIA, Patheon, Q2 Solutions and Cmed.